worship Him in a manner suitable to his nature, "in spirit and in truth." Finally remember, that you are to worship God not with your lips only, but in your lives; that the proper end of all your religious duties is to induce you and enable you, to give up yourselves continually to his service, and to walk before Him in holiness and righteousness all your days: that accordingly your progress in piety and virtue ought to be in proportion to the spiritual privileges that you enjoy; and that, as are your advantages for improvement, and greater advantages were never possessed by man, than we, my brethren, enjoy in the communion of our reformed and Apostolical Church, so also is your responsibility. Remember, therefore, as the scope and conclusion of the whole, that he only is a good and consistent member of the Church, who shows that her principles operate in him to the production of "a godly, righteous, and sober life;" and that an outward communication in her services will be utterly unavailable to a man's salvation, and will indeed rather increase his condemnation, unless it make him more humble, more resigned, more grateful, more charitable; more careful in the discharge of his social obligations, more obedient to the laws of his country, a more dutiful subject to his sovereign, and a more faithful servant of God.

Which that we may all be, God grant of his

great mercy by the sanctifying influence of his Holy Spirit, and for the merits and through the intercession of his Son: to whom, in the unity of the Father and the Holy Spirit, one Lord and God Almighty, be ascribed the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Grant, O Lord, we beseech thee, that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by thy governance, that thy Church may joyfully serve thee in all godly quietness, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O Lord, we beseech thee mercifully to receive the prayers of thy people which call upon thee; and grant that they may both perceive and know what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfil the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

DISCOURSE XVI.

THE CHURCH'S PUBLICK WORSHIP, OFFICE OF THE PEOPLE THEREIN.

ROMANS XV. 5, 6.

Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another, according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I HAVE made choice of this prayer or benediction of the Apostle, for the purpose of drawing your attention to a particular circumstance in our form of publick worship; a circumstance, almost characteristick indeed of the worship of our national Church, but of which many members of our congregations, not to say many congregations collectively, appear to be very insufficiently apprized, or very little regardful. Whether or not the present congregation be liable to this observation, is a question, on which I shall pronounce no opinion:

but leaving that to the decision of my hearers, I shall proceed at once to the subject, on which I am purposing to discourse; " and I beseech you, brethren," those amongst you in particular, to whom my remarks may appear particularly applicable, I beseech, to "suffer the word of exhortation 1."

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The Apostle's words are calculated to direct our attention to two ingredients in publick worship: the one, that concord of sentiment, on which all publick or congregational worship must be established; the other, that uniformity of manner, whereby such concord must be expressed. St. Paul, having uttered a prayer in behalf of the portion of the Church of Christ, to which his epistle was addressed, namely, the Christians at that time resident at Rome, and having therein supplicated the God of patience and consolation to grant them to be like-minded one toward another,” adds, as the result of such likemindedness, "that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" or, as the words are paraphrased by a distinguished commentator, Dr. Hammond, "that ye may join unanimously, Jews and Gentiles, into one; and, assembling together, worship and serve the Lord in all unity of affections and form of words."

1 Heb. xiii. 22.

I. That unity of affections in a Christian congregation, assembled for publick worship, is necessary, I shall not waste time in endeavouring to shew. Without it, such worship is altogether nugatory. Nor is unity of language less requisite: without it, the agreement of affections in the worshippers cannot be signified. The words of St. Paul, however, may be judged to point, not merely to unity of language, as the vehicle of unity of sentiment; but, moreover, to the union of a congregation, in the signification of such sentiments, in the utterance of such language. In other terms, they may be judged to intimate the propriety of a congregation joining vocally together in publick worship; and thus not merely acquiescing in the conveyance of their sentiments by the same form of words, but becoming themselves the agents of conveying them by the same organ of speech. It may be judged, I say, that when a congregation join vocally together in putting up their addresses to Almighty God, they then most perfectly adopt the apostolical admonition, and " glorify God," not only "with one mind," but also "with one mouth."

It is upon this principle, that the provisions for publick worship, as regulated by the united Church of England and Ireland, have been constructed. The Church has not only provided a form of prayer, to be the consistent and undeviating vehicle of the